SF’s newest rolling toilets are an homage to the Painted Ladies

San Francisco's Public Works rolls out its Painted Lady portable toilets just in time for World Toilet Day 2017.

San Francisco's Public Works rolls out its Painted Lady portable...

San Francisco Public Works is celebrating World Toilet Day with the rollout of its new Painted Ladies-style, two-in-one portable toilets — modeled after the city landmark homes that are a draw for tourists from around the world.

The colorful, disabled-accessible loos — one rolling structure divided into two restrooms — are the latest addition to the city’s Pit Stop fleet of public toilets. They move about with attendants on site to ensure they’re kept clean and safe.

“We are testing innovative designs that are inviting and encourage people to use them,” said Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru.

Public Works began the Pit Stop program in 2014, sending industrial-looking toilets into the Tenderloin in the hope of keeping the sidewalks clean. The program now operates at 17 locations around the city. Collectively, the toilets account for more than 300,000 flushes a year.

For the design of the Painted Ladies model, Public Works collaborated with San Francisco entrepreneur Nick Bovis and his Tiny Potties company. The new model will be installed one day after Sunday’s World Toilet Day, a U.N.-designated day to raise awareness for global sanitation.

It will be placed at the corner of Haight Street and Buena Vista Avenue — a mere 10 blocks from the real Painted Ladies.

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